Device for leveling shoe soles



Oct. 1, 1940. T E 2,216,256

DEVICE FOR LEVELING SHOE :SOLES Filed Aug. 16, 1939 Patented Oct. 1, 1940 PATENT OFFICE 2 ,216,i256 DEVICE FOR LEVELING SHOE soLEs J olin Tweedie, Jefferson City, Mo., assignor of onehalf'to Charles Tweedie, Jefferson City, Mo.

Application August 16, 1939,'Serial No. 290,416 cl ims; (Cl.'12--38) My invention relates to means for leveling the soles of shoes, that is, tomeans whereby the stitching ridges and lips of the channels and un- I even spots are flattened down approximately even with the adjacent surface of the sole and whereby the front and heel portionssof the sole are flattened and the intervening shank portion is given the proper convex curvature, and also to means whereby the bottoms of lasted shoesare leveled to provide a smooth-base on which to lay the outersole.

The principal object of the present invention is to devise a device for use in leveling shoeswhich will readily adaptitself to bottoms of lasts of varying contours ;v also to level outsoles for shoes, some of, which are of an even thickness, while others are reduced in thickness around the entire marginal edges: also to devise a lleVGllIlgdG- vice for concentrating pressure around the edges 29 of a sole. The invention consists in a leveling device wherein, there is a metal layer whose forepart is made in sections that are adaptedto conform to the requirements of their work. My present invention constitutes an improvement of g5 the leveling device shown in my Patent No.

In theaccompanying drawing, whereinxrlike reference numerals refer to. like parts wherever they occur, A a Fig. l is a planviewlof. my device with the metal layer shown in dotted lines, a

Fig; 21s a longitudinal section of line 22 in Fig. 1, l

i Fig. 3 is a cross-section through the shank portionon the line 3-3 in Fig.1 1; i

Fig. 4 is a View of the parts of the metal layer of Fig. ;1, i i .1

Fig. 5 is a View similar to Fig. 1 illustrating a modification; and j i y l Fig. 6- is a cross sectionl on ,the ,line 6-6 of Fig. 6. c

My device comprises a layer l of fiat metal parts or sections secured between two or more layers 2, 3 of leather or fabric, said layers having an outline similar to the shape of a shoe sole but being Wide enough and long enough for the device to be used with soles of various widths and lengths. To the upper surface of the upper layer of leather or fabric is cemented a layer 4 of hard 5 leather or other suitable material with a smooth,

wear-resistant outer surface.

In the construction shown in Fig. 1, the forepart of the metal layer comprises two triangular side plates 5, 6 disposed with their tips adjacent,

55 a triangular toe plate 1 and a triangular car plate 8 disposed with their tips adjacent. The sides of adjacent plates lie close together and the layers of leather or fabric above and below said plates are sewed together by lines 9 of stitching in the spaces between said plates as well as being 5' sewed together along their margins. The points 0, III where the front edge of the toe plate I is spaced from the side plates lie where the cur-v vature of the. edge of the sole is sharpest, that is, where the front and side edges of the device 10 merge together. By this arrangement, the side plates bear against the sides of the sole throughout the fairly straight portions of the sole at the sides'thereof, and the front section bears against the front portion of the sole which portion also 18 is fairly straight. If desirablaan extra plate l2 or thickness of metal may be inserted in the to of the forepart.

The shank portion of the metal layer of Fig. 1 comprises a series of transversely arranged sections [3, running from side edge to side edge of the metal layer. One or two of the transverse sections are far enough back to lie in the front part of the heel portion. The rear portion of the metal layer comprises a flat metal plate Id of the general shape of the rear ,part of the heel. The pad is flat when assembled and is then molded under pressure to the desired shape. As molded, the forepart of the metal layer is flat and the heel section is substantially flat and higher than the forepart sections but the shank sections are preferably made with their ends curving upwardly. The heel portion is offset upwardly with relation tothe forepart, and the intermediate shank portion slopes upwardly, all after the manner of the sole of a finished shoe.

The manner of using the hereinbefore described. device is as follows. Said device with the hard leather surface uppermost is mounted on a stiifly resilient rubber block or cushion of the kind used in laying soles. After the sole is stitched to the upper, the last upon which the sole was originally lasted or one like it, is in the shoe and the shoe is laid sole downward on my device. Pressure is then applied in any suitable way to press the sole against my device. As the work is thickest along the stitching and channel lips, the pressure will be the greatest there, flattening down the stitches and the channel lips.

Inleveling a sole, the portions along the edges will receive most of the pressure because of the increased thickness from stitching. A single metal forepart plate tends to bend at the sides and toe because of the concentration of pressure along the edges of the forepart. The bending forces at the sides act at approximately right angles to the bending force acting at the toe. These forces are resisted by the metal in the areas of greatest curvature adjacent to the toe and rear of the forepart. These areas of greatest curvature are critical areas, subject to great stress and tending to overlap. By providing a forepart of separate plates and providing for the separation of the plates in these critical areas, each is able to do its work independently, thereby eliminating any abnormal stresses.

Another advantage of my device is that the sectional forepart will better adapt itself to last bottoms of varying surfaces such as lasts that are almost flat longitudinally and transversely, or other lasts with more or less convex surfaces, both longitudinally and transversely.

The described device admits of modifications. For instance, any suitable number of parts may be used in the forepart or shank portions. In the modification shown in Figs. 5 and 6, a sectional forepart is used with a shank portion comprising a single plate IS on one side of its longitudinal medial line and a single plate 16 on the opposite side of the medial line of shank, instead of a multiplicity of transversely arranged strips. With this modification which is used to produce a shank with an angle along the middle portion, a heel plate ll of the general shape of the entire heel portion is used. It is also possible to exclude the heel plate. The shank portion may be aided by wedge shaped strips of felt, disposed longitudinally along the edges of the shank portion, the thin edges of the felt pads directed inwardly toward the middle, forcing the edges of the soles into better contact with the upper and insole, thereby forming a tightly closed joint.

What I claim is:

l. A shoe leveling device comprising soleshaped layers of flexible material secured together, and a sole-shaped metal layer between the sole-shaped layers of flexible material, said metal layer comprising a forepart made of sections disposed edgewise, a shank portion comprising a plurality of metal strips spaced apart, and a heel portion comprising a metal plate of the general shape of a heel.

2. A shoe leveling device comprising soleshaped layers of flexible material secured together, and a sole-shaped layer of stiflly resilient metal plates secured between the sole-shaped layers of flexible material, said layer of metal plates comprising a forepart of metal sections, said sections being separated where the curvature of the sole is sharpest adjacent to the toe portion, a plurality of metal spaced apart throughout the shank portion with several of said plates disposed in the heel portion, and a stifily resilient metal plate of the general shape of the rear part of the heel portion.

3. A shoe leveling device comprising upper and lower sole-shaped layers of flexible material secured together, a sole shaped metal layer secured between said upper and lower layers of flexible material, and a layer of hard leather secured flatwise on the upper sole-shaped layer of flexible 5 material, said metal layer comprising a sectional metal forepart, said sections being spaced apart where the curvature of the sole is sharpest adjacent to the toe and rear portions of the forepart, a plurality of separate metal plates spaced transversely across the shank portion, and a metal plate of the general shape of the heel portion.

4. A shoe leveling device comprising upper and lower layers of flexible material secured together to form a sole-shaped cover, a sole-shaped metal layer in said cover, said metal layer comprising a sectional forepart of stifily resilient metal plates, said plates separated in the areas where the curvature of the sole is sharpest adjacent to the toe and rear portion of the forepart, the shank portion of said metal layer being separate from the forepart and heel portions and comprising two separate plates of stiffly resilient metal on opposite sides of said shank portion, and a stifily resilient plate of the general shape of the heel.

5. A shoe leveling device comprising upper and lower sole-shaped layers of flexible material secured together, a sole-shaped metal layer secured between the sole-shaped layers of flexible material, said metal layer comprising a forepart of triangular plates, said triangular plates separated in the areas of greatest curvature adjacent to the toe and rear portion of the forepart, a shank portion of separate metal plates disposed transversely across the shank portion, some of said plates disposed in the heel portion, and a metal plate of the general shape of the rear part of a heel.

6. A shoe leveling device comprising upper and lower sole-shaped layers of flexible material secured together, the front and side edges of said layers being continuously curved and the curvature thereof being sharpest where the front and side edges merge together, a sole-shaped metal layer secured between the sole-shaped layers of flexible material, the forepart of said metal layer comprising a triangular front plate, a triangular rear plate, and triangular side plates, said triangular forepart plates being disposed with their tips adjacent and the ends of the front edge of the triangular front plate being located near where the front and side edges of the device merge together, the shank portion of said metal layer comprising separate metal plates disposed transversely across the shank portion, some of said plates being disposed in the heel portion, and the rear portion of the heel comprising a metal plate of the general shape of the rear part of the heel.

JOHN TWEEDIE. 

